Underneath Tecumseh’s downtown square sits a series of concrete vaults.
Doug Goracke, economic development director for the southeast Nebraska city of about 1,800 people, described them as small, narrow rooms.
“I don't know if it's a wives' tale or not, but back in the day, they said that you used to be able to drive, start at one side of the square and drive a horse and buggy underneath the buildings all the way around the square,” Goracke said.
A Facebook post rumored that the vaults may have been home to speakeasies during Prohibition.
“I don't think that's true. I don't know how it could be. There's just not enough room in them. So that would very much surprise me, if that's what was the case,” Goracke said about the possibility of the underground speakeasies. “I know the majority of them were used to deliver goods.”
Regardless of what they were used for, the vaults’ days are numbered.
Tecumseh started a $14 million downtown revitalization project earlier this month. As part of that construction project, the vaults will be filled in.
Goracke said planning for the project has been in the works for the past 14 years. He said the goal is to preserve the square, including the brick streets and decor. The decision to fill in the vaults came from a steering committee.
The project is mostly grant-funded, with the city providing a local match.
“While it's taken a long time, and it's been kind of painstaking, the good news is we were able to save a little bit of money along the way, and we actually could provide the match in cash, so we didn't have to borrow any money to do it,” he said.
Construction on the square is set to be complete by 2028.